Container for film slides



Nov. 5, 1957 R. D. JENKINS CONTAINER FOR FILM SLIDES Fil ed Feb. 9, 1955INVENTOR. Razz/e712. Jiwx/ms.

United StatcsPatetit 2,812,056 CONTAINER FOR FnM SLIDES Robert D.Jenkins, Indianapolis, Ind.

Application February 9, 1955, Serial No. 487,122 1 claim. (Cl. 206-39)This invention relates to a new and improved container for thirty-fivemillimeter film slides, and more particularly to one that provides asafe storage medium for the slides when they are not in use and aremoval or feed accelerating medium when in use.

As is well known, film such as thirty-five millimeter film slidesadapted for use'in a projector, are returned by the developer orprocessor company in loose form in a box. In use, such slides are takenfrom the box and inserted in the projector in dimly lighted rooms.Because of the necessity of relying more on the sense of touch than thesense of sight under such circumstances, the conventional boxes for theslides are not satisfactory. This is because it is so diflicult toremove individual slides from them, and to return the slides to them inthe desired sequence and order.

This last mentioned point, i. e. the return of the slides in propersequence is known to be of great significance for when the slides arenext used it enables the graphic story to be unfolded to view in harmonywith the narrative or word story. Conventional slide containers or boxeshave made this most difficult, and the slide frequently appear out ofturn or sequence.

It is, therefore, the primary object of this invention to provide acontainer which will facilitate the insertion and removal respectivelyof the slides with a minimum of efiort.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a containerwhich will safely store and house the slides. It is well recognized thatsuch slides are of great value, particularly sentimental value, and thattheir loss, destruction or damage can be in the nature of a calamitysince they are irreplaceable.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide alightweight, inexpensive container of a material such by way of exampleas aluminum which through the process of anodizing may be attractivelyfinished and colored as desired.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide acontainer of such a character and construction that it may be formedfrom a one piece blank. In so doing the number of fabricating steps isreduced, and the total cost of manufacture is correspondingly lessened.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide acontainer that will fit in the drawers of conventional slide cabinets,and thus substantially increase their storage capacity.

A still further object is to provide a container that will reduceappreciably the danger of slide breakage when the container isinadvertently dropped on hard surfaces.

The full nature of the invention will be understood from theaccompanying drawings and the following description and claim.

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the invention showingparticularly the front end thereof.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing particularly the rear end of theinvention.

Fig. 3 is a front elevation view.

Fig. 4 is a vertical section view taken on line 4-4 of of Fig. 3 in thedirection of the arrows.

2,812,056 Patented Nov. 5, 7

Fig. 5 is an end elevation view. In the drawings, the container is shownto comprise a one piece blank formed into a generally U shape. Sidewalls 10 and 11, and back wall 12, are formed at right angles relativeto each other as the blank is run through a set of dies.

The upper, lower and end edge portions of the respective walls are bentinwardly at right angles to form top, bottom and front flanges 13, 14and 15. These flanges partially close the otherwise open top, bottom andfront of the container.

In actually forming the container the blank will be notched prior to itsbeing sent through the set of forming dies. Notch 16 will be formed inwhat becomes the lower portion of the back wall and the adjacent bottomflange. This notch is sized to enable one to manually propel thelowermost slide out of the container by finger. It is thus a fingerejecting notch or opening.

Opposite this notch is the pair of openings 17 which are formed bynotching out the lower extremities of the front flanges so that theirbottom edges are in slightly spaced relation from the bottom flanges.These openings are sized to permit a single slide, i. e. the bottom orlower most slide of the moment, to be ejected therethrough as a resultof finger pressure, through notch 16, upon the opposite end of theslide.

In order to facilitate the reintroduction or insertion of the slidesafter use, into the container, an opening 18 is formed by notching outthe front end portions of two of the top flanges. More particularly, thetwo top flanges that are extensions of the side walls as distinguishedfrom the back wall, are notched out so that their front end edges are inslightly spaced relation from the top edges of the front flanges. Thisopening is sized to enable one to put the slides back in the containerefiortlessly and with ease.

In use, the container may be clasped between the thumb and third fingerof one hand with the index finger of the same hand exerting ejectingpressure through opening 16 upon the lowermost of the gravity fedslides. When a sufficient portion of the opposite end of that slide haspassed through openings 17, it may be grasped by the other hand andpulled completely out and placed in the projector. Then the slide justshown, may be taken out of the projector and reintroduced into thecontainer through openings 18. In this manner the proper order andsequence of the slides will be maintained.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in thedrawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered asillustrative and not restrictive in character, it being understood thatonly the preferred embodiment has been shown and described and that allchanges and modifications that come within the spirit of the inventionand the scope of the claim are also desired to be protected.

The invention claimed is:

A container for still-picture slides comprising a one-piece blank formedinto a generally U shape and having opposed side walls and a connectingback wall, said walls each having inwardly directed top and bottomflanges formed at their upper and lower ends, said side walls alsohaving inwardly directed flanges formed along a part of their free endsto form a partial front wall, the lower ends of said last mentionedflanges being vertically spaced from the adjacent bottom flanges of saidside Walls to define a slide ejection opening, the top flanges of saidside walls extending only a part of the distance along the upper ends ofsaid side walls whereby the end edges of said last mentioned flanges arespaced inwardly from the flanges forming said partial front wall, andsaid back wall and its adjacent bottom flange having an opening formedtherein for accommodating the finger of a hand, whereby upon 946,341Dooley I an. 11, 1910 exercise of finger pressure a still-slide may bemoved out 1,103,977 Marx July 21, 1914 through said ejection opening. I1,382,092 Kilmer June 21, 1921 r 2,222,245 Steen Nov. 19, 1940References C ed in the file o isp t 5 2,520,881 Hopp Aug. 29, 1950 N TSTATES PATENTS 2,542,724 Stettner Feb. 20, 1951 889,950 Morrison June 9,1908

